Sony’s latest VAIO squares up to MacBook

Something tells me that if you bit into this VAIO CR laptop you'd find a striking aftertaste of Apple. There's certainly no avoiding where Sony got the design prompt for its latest notebook range from, but since the tech product world is full of mimicry, emulation and tribute it's easier to ignore it and look at how well the CR stacks up. NotebookReview have done just that.

With a full range of Core 2 Duo processors available, as well as a 14.1-inch 1280 x 800 WXGA screen and up to 4GB of RAM, the Vista-powered CR range slots somewhere in-between ultraportables and desktop-replacements at 5.5lbs. It's a competitive segment, and Sony are obviously forced to work hard to get the CR to stand out from the rest. The multiple glossy casing finishes should go some way to doing that, while inside the standard a/b/g/n WiFi should win it some friends. Less impressive is the shared video memory, which NotebookReview found to mire the CR in a disappointingly low 3DMark05 score compared to rivals.

What it does well, however, is stay cool, run fast and look great. NotebookReview put it forward as a good alternative to the MacBook, both in features and appearance. Check out the full review to find out more.